using nothing more than his nerves, and a towel. so what was he thinking? we'll ask him in a live interview "today," friday, may we'll ask him in a live interview "today," friday, may 18th, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. welcome to "today" on a friday morning, i'm matt lauer here in new york in studio 1a. ann curry continues to join us from cannes, france, and ann, good morning to you. >> good morning to you, matt. that's right. i'm still here. but you can hate me a little less this morning, because earlier it was raining cats and dogs here. not that anyone here is really complaining. it's great weather for a movie, right? well one of the films opening tonight is "madagascar 3," featuring the voices of some very funny actors including ben stiller, and chris rock. so we're going to talk to them, as well as their co-stars jada pinkett smith, jessica chastain, david schwimmer and martin short when they all join us live this morning coming up a little bit later, matt. >> thank you very much. also ahead we're going to take a look back at the remarkable career of donna summer. the queen of disco lost her ten-month battle with cancer on thursday. but she leaves a catalog of incredible hits. of course, summer was a huge influence on many artists, and speaking of music, and today's artists we have one of the hottest on the planet ready to kick off our summer concert season. seven-time grammy winner usher will perform in our 8:30 half hour for that huge crowd out on the plaza. but we begin on a friday morning with the big story on wall street. facebook's initial public offering of stocks. savannah guthrie is at the nasdaq exchange where it's being listed. savannah, good morning to you. >> good morning, matt. by the end of this day, facebook ceo mark zuckerberg could find himself one of the richest men in the country, and lots of americans want to get a piece of the action. the question is, can facebook turn its popularity, with nearly 1 billion users, into a business model that really works? experts say that facebook's initial public offering will bring the company around $16 billion. that's the third biggest ipo in u.s. history. and the biggest-ever in the tech sector. >> i t think that the real difference between facebook and other ipos is that everybody uses it. they have 900 million users out of 1.5 billion people who use the internet. that's really where the interest is coming from. >> but will all those users add up to real value for investors? >> advertising is a huge concern for facebook. because, the thing that people like about facebook is interacting with their friends. they're definitely not there to shop. >> reporter: this week, general motors said it will stop buying space on the social network, after concluding that facebook ads aren't reaching people looking to buy a car. >> if there's no value underneath these ads, then facebook's revenue has nothing underneath it, and that means it could fall off dramatically. >> reporter: c-net executive editor hollywood says some analysts are questioning whether facebook can meet the lofty expectations this ipo is creating. >> in a way they're going public when they're at their peak. if you already have 900 million users, you really have to ask, as a potential investor, where's the growth potential? >> reporter: in fact, even though it seems like everyone is on facebook, 2 in 5 american adults haven't signed up, and experts say that's mostly by choice. >> the number one reason people are holding off from facebook is they feel it's going to take more time they want to spend in front of a screen. >> reporter: reaching those facebook resisters will be a key challenge for the company. but right now, experts say there's no real competition on the virtual horizon. >> they are the only game in town. it doesn't look like anybody's going to threaten their market position. >> reporter: investors who think that facebook is a good bet say that ad revenue is not the only way for the company to make money. they point out that facebook is sitting on tons of data about its users. the question is, how the company can harvest that to make money. the stock's opening at $38 a share. a lot of people stand to get rich today. according to forbes, matt, the rock star bono, his holdings will be worth $750 million after this initial public offering. back to you. >> it's a nice little friday. savannah, thank you very much. we appreciate it. change subjects now to a trove of evidence in the trayvon martin case. now being made public. according to one police report the 17-year-old's death at the hands of george zimmerman was ultimately avoidable. nbc's kerry sanders has sifted through the hundreds of documents. kerry, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. the evidence, which is now public, can be viewed from two different points of view, and clearly that's what happened here because initially george zimmerman was not charged with a chime. then a special prosecutor was appointed, reviewed the evidence, and george zimmerman was charged with second degree murder. these are police evidence photos of george zimmerman. just hours after he shot and killed trayvon martin. a bloody wound on the back of his head, his nose likely broken according to his doctor. the 28-year-old told police he was defending himself against trayvon martin. that rainy night in late february. just minutes before the shooting the 17-year-old had been at a nearby 7-eleven picking up skittles and an iced tea. these surveillance video images from three separate cameras are the final moments of his teenage life. within minutes martin would be shot dead with his cal tech 9 millimeter, owned and carried by neighborhood watch captain george zimmerman. and in this gated community in sanford, florida, some of the police evidence like recorded witness interviews supports zimmerman's version of events. that he was protecting himself. this is a recording of one police interview with a witness. >> the one guy on top in the black hoodie was pretty much just throwing down blows on the guy kind of mma style. >> reporter: mma. that's mixed martial arts. a form of aggressive fighting. from the moment a 911 caller picked up this cry for help. >> so he think he's yelling help? >> reporter: it's been unclear whose voice that was. martin's mother says it was her son. but when his father listened to the tape, an investigator writes, mr. martin clearly emotionally impacted by the recording, quietly responded no. in a recorded interview, zimmerman's father told police the cry for help was from his son. >> that is absolutely, positively george zimmerman. myself, my wife, family members and friends know that that is george zimmerman. there is no doubt who is yelling for help. >> reporter: in the mountains of evidence, another witness says despite looking out her window, she was unable to determine who was the aggressor. >> he we heard a shot i looked out and that's when i saw two men on the -- on the grass. >> okay. you saw two people? >> two people. >> and they were -- were they both on the ground? >> no. one was on top of the other. i don't know which one. >> okay. >> reporter: crime scene photos show the single bullet casing police found in the grass. the medical examiner report says the bullet tore through martin's heart. and thc, active chemical found in marijuana, was in martin's blood. in the 183 pages of documents, it's clear at least one san ford police officer felt, from the start, zimmerman should be arrested. he wrote, i believe there exists probable cause for issuance of a capias charging george michael zimmerman with manslaughter. but at the time, the state attorney decided florida's stand your ground law, gave zimmerman immunity. it was only when florida's governor appointed a special prosecutor that zimmerman was charged. none of the surveillance video from the gated community's clubhouse shows exactly what happened that night. but even without video, police concluded early on the encounter between george zimmerman and trayvon martin was ultimately avoidable by zimmerman. if zimmerman had remained in his vehicle, and awaited the arrival of law enforcement. the very same mountain of evidence will be relied on by both the prosecution, and the defense, if this goes to a jury trial. but before that is decided, a judge will have to weigh in to determine whether george zimmerman has immunity under florida's stand your ground law. matt? >> all right, kerry sanders in sanford, florida, this morning. kerry, thanks so much. benjamin crump is an attorney for the family of trayvon martin, mark o'mara is george zimmerman's attorney. gentlemen, good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> good morning, sir. >> mr. crump, let me start with you, you won't have a role in a criminal trial if it results from this case. you do represent trayvon martin's family. you have seen this evidence. what do you think and what do the martin's think is the most important piece of new evidence we're seeing in this case? >> the most important piece, matt, is what the police determined it was completely avoidable if george zimmerman would have simply stayed in his car. if he wouldn't have profiled trayvon martin and pursued him and confronted him, he wouldn't be in jail, and more importantly, trayvon martin would be living today. >> you say if he hadn't profiled trayvon martin. have you seen any piece of evidence in this latest document release, mr. crump, that proves to you that george zimmerman targeted trayvon martin because of his race? >> well, all we know is what he said, that goes to his state of mind, in that 911 call. he said that he looked suspicious. he got out of his car, and he said, these a-holes always get away. and that's going to be important to listen to his words. that's objective evidence that we can judge for ourselves and that's what the family wants. all the evidence out, so it can be vetted and looked at carefully, and he pursues him. we hear him running after trayvon. we hear him breathing. and so, there's close in time that we know we can connect the dots with the phone call. all the evidence is out, and a jury can listen to it all like the state attorney. >> mr. o'mara let me go to you. you had a chance to pore through this evidence, these documents, as well. what's the most important piece of evidence that you've seen that would back up the idea that george zimmerman shot trayvon martin in self-defense? >> well, at the outset i need to say, and i know it's somewhat frustrating to your listeners, that the ethical rules that we have as lawyers connected with the case, and quite honestly my opinion that all lawyers have, prohibits us from talking about the evidence of an active criminal case. so while i might have my opinions on the evidence, it would be improper for me to talk about those. plus, as i've said from the outset of this case, my mantra, if you will, has always been that we really cannot look at these cases, and these pieces of evidence, individually, and we have to look at it as a whole, only when all the evidence is in play. and we -- i don't have but half of it, so i know nobody else has more than that. we really have to wait until the evidence is out. >> let me ask you this, and this is not asking you to comment on a specific piece of evidence, but earlier this week prosecutors said that they're going to present george zimmerman's cell phone text messages as part of their case. these are messages that were recorded in the days and weeks following the shooting of trayvon martin. are you aware of what's in those messages, and are you concerned there's anything in there that will cast mr. zimmerman in a more negative light? >> i have been through a majority of them. people make their own decisions concerning what he says. i myself am not concerned about it. but it's incomplete at this point, because i haven't looked at them all. >> and mr. crump, this idea of this 911 call that was recorded, this is the call i'm talking about, where we hear a cry from help coming from one of the two people involved in that confrontation. when he was interviewed on february 28th, trayvon martin's father said that it was not his son's voice calling for help. how big an impact do you think that's going to have on the case? because, if it wasn't trayvon martin, it was george zimmerman. >> i don't think that it' going to have that big of an impact. but you have to put everything in full context as attorney o'mara said. this was -- within 48 hours after his son had been killed and on that day the sanford police said they were not going to arrest george zimmerman. he said that it was distorted, and he couldn't tell anything on the tape, not just that he couldn't tell that it was trayvon. and the biggest thing there is it's not recorded, and so it's a different account. and tracy martin heard that, he broke down and cried like a baby when he heard his son's voice. sabrina always said it was her son's voice. but people can hear it for themselves. >> mr. o'mara i want to end with you. can you shed a little light for me on the type of life george zimmerman is living today, and how actively involved is he in creating his own defense? >> well, he is actively involved in helping me out. we have to do it remotely. he's living a life and has to live in hiding, he's in fear for his life. again there's been a groundswell of animosity and anger towards him. i don't believe it's properly placed, because the evidence isn't there to support it. but, we'll find out. he's doing okay. one last response, i understand law enforcement perspective that this was avoidable. but quite honestly in every life event or experience, we can go back to one of the premises, had it nod happened -- had he not been going to the target store, had trayvon martin not been in the neighborhood, had he not got out of his car. we have to deal with what did happen and try to explain that away properly and in a courtroom. >> mark o'mara -- >> but he got out of the car. he didn't have to get out of the car. >> mr. crump, mr. o'mara, i thank you both for your time this morning. thank you very much. i know you're busy. let's go over now and get the rest of the top stories of the morning. natalie is over at the news desk with all the headlines. natalie, good morning to you. >> and good morning to you, matt. and good morning, everyone. the fate of john edwards will now be decided by a jury, which begins deliberations today. the former presidential candidate is accused of using nearly $1 million in campaign donations to comp up an affair with his pregnant mistress. robert kennedy skwrr junior, the es changed husband of the late mary kennedy says every member of his family considered mary a kennedy. mary kennedy died thursday at the age of 52, with authorities confirming her death was caused by asphyxiation due to hanging. her husband filed for divorce in 2010 but tells "the new york times" the people had been living separately for four years. he also said in regards to her battle with depression, that, quote, a lot of times i don't know how she made it through the day. she was in a lot of agony for a lot of her life. two separate shootings left three people dead thursday in louisville. police were called to the scene of one shooting, when several shots rang out nearby, two people were arrested. two others are hospitalized. the financially strapped postal service says it can no longer wait for congress to act and will begin closing nearly 250 mail processing centers by 2014 the post office will have 28,000 fewer employees, saving the organization more than $2 billion a year. and a zoo in eastern india is welcoming three new beautiful additions. rare white bengal tiger cubs born thursday. officials say they're healthy and are being kept under close supervision to make sure they adjust to their new environment. they're just teeny tiny. but you know, they don't stay that way. let's turn it back over to matt and al. >> all right, natalie. >> they are cute. >> thank you very much. a lot of people out there. you going to go visit them soon? >> you bet. but we've got a decent day today to talk about throughout much of the country. we do have some showers on the southeastern atlantic coast. more rain continuing in southern florida. showers making their way through the northern plains. we expect to see plenty of sunshine in the pacific northwest. windy conditions southern california. frost advisories this morning in interior new york and upstate and also in interior new england. the heat continues along the gulf coast. windy conditions from the central plains down into northern texas. >> good morning. it will turn out to be a beautiful afternoon. we expect mostly sunny skies. >> and that's your latest weather. matt? >> all right, al, thanks so much. fans and friends of donna summer are expressing sadness over the death of the so-called queen of disco. the five-time grammy winner died on thursday in naples, florida, after a battle with cancer. nbc's gabe gutierrez has more on summers' remarkable career. gabe, good morning to you. >> matt, good morning. even the white house released a statement with president obama calling summer unforgettable. she lived here part time in naples but her career touched lives all over the world. ♪ bad girls bad girls ♪ >> reporter: she was the queen of disco. from love to love you to "hot stuff." ♪ looking for some hot stuff >> reporter: donna summer defined the disco era. >> donna summer did more than anyone else to make disco cool. >> reporter: she burst onto the scene in the u.s. in the '70s. >> i feel when i came to america i was at the budding stage, and maybe i'm springing a leaf about right now and maybe one day i'll be a blossom. >> reporter: born in boston ladonna adrienne gains started singing gospel as a child. >> i started si eed singing anda sudden this voice came catapulting out of my body. i remember it. and it scared me. tears were coming out of my eyes. >> reporter: after high school, summer moved on to musicals and recordings in europe. at first, just popular in dance clubs, her appeal quickly spread. >> she's a dance artist who became a mainstream pop artist. ♪ >> so in that sense, she sets the career path for madonna. >> reporter: summer had 19 number one hits and the record for most consecutive double albums. three of them that topped the billboard charts. she won five grammys, and even an oscar for "last dance." >> i think that her music, those anthems that she sang were anthems of equality and empowerment for everyone. ♪ works hard for the money so you better treat her right ♪ >> reporter: three years ago she released her last album, performing here on "today," and talking with matt. >> what about advice on staying around for a long time, longevity? >> if you have good songs more than likely you will stay around for a long time. >> reporter: donna summer was 63. ♪ and when he heard about her death, pop legend elton john said, quote, that she has never been inducted into the rock 'n' roll hall of fame is a total disgrace. matt? >> gabe gutierrez. gabe, thank you very much. as you saw in his piece there, she was here several years ago for a concert outside. i had a chance to talk to her and i asked her how she felt about being called the queen of disco. take a look. >> i'm curious if 30 years ago, when you started recording some of this music, if you ever stopped to think that today would still be playing as frequently as it is? >> i never did. no. but i'm really happy that it is. >> so you're as surprised by it as everybody else? >> absolutely surprised. >> you know for the last week we've known you've been coming and i have constantly referred to you as the queen of disco. and i'm curious, do you like that title? because you kind of make a little fun of it in one of the s